1952 Classic Chevrolet "Brilliantly New For '52!"

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The production of the 1952 Chevrolet dropped to 818,142 units from the 1,229,986 units produced by Chevrolet in 1951. The cause was not the competition from Ford but had more to do with the government imposed production quotas related to the Korean War.

Since materials were allocated to automakers in proportion to their 1951 sales, Chevy was guaranteed to hold the production lead in 1952. This decision by the Government to impose production figures was not welcomed by Ford. In 1952, the Ford Motor Co. introduced a new, clean looking square rigged Ford with a one piece windshield, simple grille and small round taillights.

What did all this mean for Chevrolet in 1952? The answer was more of the same....
"More People buy Chevrolets than any other car"!

1952 Chevrolet Styleline Deluxe Bel Air 2 Door Hardtop
1952 Bel Air - Beach White over Bittersweet

A new grille for the 1952 Chevy had five vertical bars that soon became known as Chevrolet "teeth." They were mounted to the horizontal center divider bar and equally spaced out from the center. The parking lamps were again in the lower grille opening and again oblong shaped but center in the housing. The word Chevrolet trimmed a wider new nose emblem, which still had a bowtie logo.

1951 Chevrolet Sedan
"See The U.S.A. In Your Chevrolet"

1952 Chevrolet Sedan
"Brilliantly New For '52"

"Brilliantly new, excitingly new in many wonderful ways" are some of the straight facts in Chevrolet advertising for the production year 1952. The style of the 1952 Chevrolet was smarter and trimmer looking, particularly the striking new grille and the design detail of front and rear fenders. Brighter solid colors and two tone color combinations were available and there was more to choose from, 26 in all. In addition to smart styling and new body and interior colors advertising claimed a smoother running engine and softer ride for the 1952 Chevrolet. Rear bumper and rear taillights remained nearly the same. Dealer introduction began January 19, 1952.

Many 1952 Chevrolet magazine ad's claimed "The Only Fine Car - Priced So Low!". With all its fine features and economy of operation, Chevrolet is the lowest priced line in the low price field.
Even the big and beautiful Chevrolet Belair, like so many other Chevrolet body types listed for less than any comparable model in its field had "Low Price and Great Value"!
1952 Chevrolet - The Only Fine Car - Priced So Low
Chevy took a time out in the production years 1950 and 1951, with very few mechanical developments and only heavier and bulkier sheet metal for 1951. In 1952 only detailed trim revisions were made. Yet Chevy remained "USA-1" for 1950, 1951 and 1952.

No automaker better reflected the high spirited 1950s than Chevrolet. The early years of 1950-1952 were the last of the traditional low cost Chevy's. In 1953 and 1954 Chevrolet saw a transition. 1955 was a revolution. The Chevrolet Division of General Motors moved from building "dull sedans" to building "dull sedans". However, in the decade of the 1950s, the Chevrolet evolved from a family car to a hot performance car and dropped from number one in the industry to number two, but only briefly.

Most of Chevy's decisions between 1950 and 1959 were the right one. It was right to build the Corvette in 1953. It was right to build the Bel Air in 1950, first as a hardtop and later as an individual series. It was right to build the 265 cubic inch V-8 engine in 1955 and the 283 cubic V-8 engine in 1957. With this new V-8's, Chevrolet changed it's image over night. It was right to produce the Impala in 1958 because it upgraded the character of the top of the line. Learn more about our favorite classic Chevy cars at this web site and our other classic Chevy sites. We cover 1950 to 1959 Chevrolets.